Washing machine



H. R. MERSELES ET AL WASHING MACHINE Filed June 11. 1924 April 3, 192s. 1,664,637

NVENTOR s ATro EY HENRY R. MERSELES,

Patented Apr. 3, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.r

- l i 'OF BRONXVILLE, AND PEIRCE M. WOOD, vOF NEW ROCHELLE,

NEW YORK, lASSIGNORS, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, T0 HOBART yMAN-UFAC'IUIB'IN(1 COMPANY, OF TROY, OHIO, A CORPORATION 0F OHIO. i

WASHING MACHINE.

Application illed June 11, 1924. Serial No. 719,262.

This invention relates to washing machines, and aimsto provide a ra id and efficient dishwashing machine o large capacity.

. A machine embodying the invention-provides primary and secondary washes through whichl the dishes or other articles to be washed are passed in succession. The -primary and secondary washes are drawn from separate tanks, and'each is returned to its own tank after passing over the articles.

A feature of the invention consists in skimmin off or decanting the grease floating on the Iiquid in each 'of the tanks of a was ing machine by automatically supplying a slight excess of liquid to each tank during such timeA as dishes are being washed in the machine. The automatic arrangement is such that when no'dishes are assing through the machine the excess supp y of liquid to each tank is cut off so that no liquid is wasted.

` A further feature of the invention 4consists in obtaining the excess liquid for each tank from a rinse spray under which the dishes are passed after they have -passed through the primary and secondary washes. In accordance with this feature ofthe invention, the liquid from ithe rinse spray, after passing over the dishes, is divided into two parts. which are separately conducted to the primary and secondary wash tanks, respectively. The grease is,-therefore, skimmed ofi' from Y the liquid -in both tanks without supplying any fresh water other than that necessarily supplied for the final rinse.

A further feature consists in utilizing the secondary wash to provide a screen to prevent the primary wash from reaching the rinsespray. i

These and other features of the invention may best be understood from a detailed description of a dishwashing machine embodying the invention which is shown in' the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the machine sectioned on the line 1-1 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 2 isa lan view of the machine sectioned on the ine 2-2 of Fig. 1.

The framework 10 of the machine shown in the drawings supports a casing 11,` the upper portion of whlch forms a long hood 12 through which dishes or other articles to be washed may be moved in the direction of the arrow 13, for example, by means of a chain conveyer 14 indicated diagrammatically in the drawings. The ends of the hood 12 contain, respectively, an entrance opening 4 for the racks and dishes and an exit openingI 15. In the lower part of the casing near the entrance end of the machine are two separated tanks, P1 for 'the primar wash liquid and S1 for the secondary was liquid. The bottom of the casing at the exit end ofthe machine provides a long spillway S2 for directing liquid into the secondary wash tank S1. A deflector P2 which extends over the secondary wash tank lS1 and' over part of the spillway S2. and terminates in a "vertical transverse' flange P2",l serves to direct liquid into the vprimary wash tank P1. The flange P2o lies below the upper reach of the conveyer'14 and contains openings (not shown) for the passage of the lower reach of the conveyer.

The first treatment of the dishes, the primary washing, takes place in the portion Pof the hood 12 near the entrance end of the machine. In vthis portion of the hood are two wash projectors P, P5 to which washing liquid is supplied from the primary tank P1 by a .centrifugal pump P6 which' draws the liquid through a conduit P"com lmunicating with the primary tank P1 near the bottom thereof and supplies this liquid to the projectors P4, P5 through conduits PB. The. pump'P, whichis driven by an electric motor 16, is formed to sup ly a large volume or `flowof liquid and to d) eliver it at a low ressure.I The projectors P* and P5 are v provi ed with a number of discharge openings P of large total cross-section so that a vlarge volume of liquid may be projected through them by the application of a comparatively low pressure. .The ump P6 and projectors P, Ps thusy provi e means for deluging the dishes with a great volume of 25 The chamber of the pump S is, however,

liquid moving at a low velocity. In order to distribute this volume of liquid overthe dishes most effectively, the projectorsPand P5 are rotatably mounted and are provlded with inclined end nozzles which cause them to rotate by reaction of the liquid dscharged. The projectors P* and P5 shown in the drawings are of the type described and claimed inA the co-pending application of Henry R. Merse'les, tiled May 20, 1924, Serial No. 714,568, andare, therefore, not claimed herein.

The second treatment or secondary washing of the dishes occurs in the portion S3 of lthe hood 12 which each rack of .dishes enters on leaving the portion P5. In the portion S5 ""of the hood are two projectors S4, S5 to which liquid is supplied from the secondary tank S1 by a centrifugal pump S5 which draws the liquid through a conduit S7 com-- municating with the secondary tank S1 near the bottom thereof and supplies this liquid to the'projectors S4, S5 through conduits S8. The pump S may have its rotor mounted on the same shaft as that of the pump P8 so that it may be driven by the same motor 16.

entirely separate from that of the pump P6.

' The pump S6 is formed to supply a small volume or flow of liquid and to deliver it at high pressure. The projectors S" and S5 are provided with discharge vopenings of small total cross-section through which liquid supplied at high pressure may-be projected at high velocity. The discharge open- `ings of each of these projectors are positioned in a straight line extending across the hood 12. Each discharge opening has the form of a slit extending at a slight angle j to the line on which the openings are posi- "thus projected strikes the dishes at high velocity and reaches all the `dishes of each rackv as the rack travels through the space S5, effectively scraping off any v'particles of dirt remaining o n the dishes'. The volume of liquid projected is, however, so small that notwithstanding the velocity at which it strikes the dishes, the liquid does not move them about in any way. f

In the portion R of the hood 12 near its exit end the washed dishes are subjected to 66 the rinsing and sterilizing action of clean hot water supplied from a source outside the .machine through a conduit R1 to sprayers R3., R4. Thesprayers R3, R4 shown `in the drawings are provided with nozzles of the form' shown .and claimed in the copending application of Henry R. Merseles,

filed July 30, 1923, Serial No. 654,520 which are consequently not claimed herein. The flow of the' rinsing water through the conduit R1 is controlled by a valve R5 having an operating arm R6r which is urged by a spring R7 to project into the path of travel of the dish racks moved by the conveyer 14.

The valve R5 is opened whenever a dish rack engages the arm R5 and 1s closed whenno rack is 1n engagement with thls arm. It follows that freshwater issupplied to the rinse splashing, but the water curtain provided by v the secondary wash projectors S4, S5 effec tively prevent any part of `it fromr reaching the portion R of the yhood and interfering with the final rinsing of the dishes.

The liquid from the secondary wash projectors S, S5, after passing'k over the dishes, falls upon the spillwayl S2 and is returned to the tank S1 from which it is pumped up again by the pump S5. i

Screens 17 located above the tanks P1, S1 serve to catch any solid matter removed from the dishes by the primary and secondary washes and prevent it from falling into the tanks P1 and S1. Owing to the re-use of the liquid in each tank, however, grease and floating impurities tend to collect upon the upper surface of.I the liquid in each tank. This grease is constantly removed by .a small overflow from each tank into the space 18 between the twotanks. The overflow is conducted away from this space through a drain pipe 19, to which are also connected valve controlled pipes for emptying the two tanks. A continuous overflow of liquid from each tank. when. dishes are passing through the machine is caused by conducting a portion of the fesh .water supplied through the rinse sprays R5, R4 into each of the'tanks P1 and S1. A portion of the rinse water, after passing over the dishes, is permitted to flow over the spillway S2 and into the tank S1. Another portion of the rinse water is trapped in a receptacle P1o provided by a longitudi nal wall P11 and a transverse wall P12v on the upper surface of the spillway S2 under the rinse projectors and is thence conducted to the tank P1 `through a conduit P11.

Heating means, such as steam f pipes P14 and S11, are provided for keeping the primary and secondary liquids hot during the operation of the machine.. In order to obtain the most rapid and effective Washing, the secondary wash liquid should be mainorder that it may not cook or'bake on food adhering to the surfaces of the .dishes. Owing to the small volume of liquid discharged through the secondary projectors S,

S5 and the open space 18 between the two tanks, which prevents the conduction of heat from one tank to the other, the secondary wash liquid may be maintained at a temperature near the boiling point of water by the use of a comparatively small amount of steam or other heating medium in the heater S1.

lVhile the exact sizes and proportions of the parts may be varied without departing from the invention, we may note, by way of example, that in a large capacity machine embodying the invention we found it satisfactory to form the pump P6 to circulate 60() gallons of liquid per minute at a head of 6 feet, to make the total effective cross-sectional area of the discharge openings ofthe primary projectors P* and P5 about l0 square inches, to form the secondary pump S6 to provide a circulation of 60 gallons per minute at a head of 25 feet, and to make the total effective cross-sectional area of the nozzles of the secondary projectors S4, S5 about 0.7 square inches.

In a machine of these proportions, the volume of liquid discharged by the primary projectors in a. given length of time is about l0 times the volume discharged` by the secondary projectors, while the pressure of the secondary liquid at the discharge nozzles, and consequently the velocity with which this liquid strikes the dishes, is about 4 times the pressure at the nozzles of the primary projectors and the velocity with which the primary liquid strikes the dishes.

While in the above `specification the three treatments to which the articles are subjected have been termed the primary wash, the secondary wash and the rinse because it is believed that these terms most accurately describe the function ofthe three treatments, it may be noted that, as the secondary rinse has the effect of removing .any of the primary washing liquid which may be left on the articles, the secondary wash may be, and frequently is, termed a rinsing operation; and that the' final rinsing with hot clean water has the effect of sterilizing as well as rinsing the articles and is, therefore, not vinfrequently referred to as sterilizing. The

three terms primary rinse, secondary wash,v

and rinse, as used in the claims that follow, and the corresponding terms applied to the elements by which these operations are performed, are to be understood to cover the three operations of the general character described in the specification regardless of the particular terms which may be used to deline these three operations in any particular machine.

Certain features of the machine described and illustrated form a part of the subject mattei' of the copending application of Henry R. Merseles, filed January 26, 1923, Serial No. 614,960, and are,.therefore, not claimed herein.

What we claim is 1. A dish-washing machine having a casing providing a long hood, means for guiding the articles to be washed through said hood, a rotary liquid distributor located in said hood neai its entrance end, a rinse spray located in said hood neai' its exit end, and a fixed projector extending transversely across the hood between the rotary projector and the rinse spray and arranged to project across the hood a curtain of liquid which screens the rinse spray from the liquid discharged by the rotary distributor.

2. In a dish-washing machine, the combination with va casing, means for guiding racks containin the articles to be washed through the casing, two tanks in the casing, means for supplying excess liquid to each of said tanks so as to cause the liquid therein to overflow, of a normally .closed valve controlling the supply of excess liquid, and means actuated by the passage of i'acks through the casing to open said valve.

3: A dish-washing machine comprising a casing, means for guiding racks containing articles to be washed through the casing, two tanks in the casing, means for circulating liquid contained-in each of said tanks over the articles to be washed and returning it to its tank, a rinse spray in the casing, a conduit for supplying liquid to the rinse spray, a normally closed valve in said conduit, means actuated by the passage of racks through the casing to open said valve, and guiding means for directing a portion of the liquid from the rinse spray into each of said tanks so as to cause an overfiow from each of them. j

4. In a washing machine having a primary tank and Washing mechanism associated therewith and a secondary tank and washing mechanism associated therewith, the combination of a plurality of spray devices located beyond the secondary tank and directing rinsing liquid against the w'ashed articles, a'receptacle located under 'some of said spray devices to receive liquid from them after it is passed over the articles, means, including a pipe extending from said receptacle, for directing the liquid caught in said receptacle into the primary tank, and a spillway extending under others of said spray devices for directing liquid therefrom into the secondary tank.

5. In a washing machine, a casing providing a long hood, a. conveyer for carrying the articles to be Washed through said hood, and a liquid projector extending transversely acrossthe hood andA having a plurality of discharge slits spaced end from end along in 5 a straight line and each extending at a small angle to saidline so that they project a sheet of liquid consisting of a plurality of overlapping non-interfering fan-shaped sprays through which all the articles to be Washed are carried by the movement of the l0 u y HENRY. R. MERSELES.

PEIRCE M. Woon. 

